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Sinagporean LGBT personalities
(See the main article Singapore gay personalities for more information, pictures and links.) Introduction Prior to the 1990s, it was almost impossible to publicly list an individual who was willing to admit that he or she was homosexual. It was only with the AIDS crisis, the liberalisation of society spurred by the growth of the Internet, the introduction of cable television into Singapore, the worldwide trend toward human rights and freedom of individual expression, plus the economic advantages of social diversity recognised by the Government, that gay Singaporeans have been courageous enough to stand up and be counted for what they truly are. This is all the more remarkable in the face of what is oftentimes insurmountable prejudice and homophobia. Historical Paddy Chew Chew was the first Singaporean to publicly declare his HIV-positive status, thus giving a face to an affliction which mainstream society considered remote from possible encounter. He came out on 12 Dec 1998 during the First National AIDS Conference in Singapore. He identified his orientation as bisexual. His plight was dramatised in a play called "Completely With/Out Character" produced by The Necessary Stage, directed by Alvin Tan and written by Haresh Sharma, staged from 10-17 May 1999. He died on 21 Aug 1999, shortly after the play's run ended. Arthur Yap Yap was arguably Singapore's finest poet, influential amongst the later generations of Singaporean writers. He died of naso-pharyngeal carcinoma on 19 June 2006. *Read Yawning Bread's article on Yap's life:http://www.yawningbread.org/arch_2006/yax-618.htm Contemporary The following categorisations are arbitrary as most of the LGB individuals listed are active in more than one field. Transgender personalities and cross-dressing artistes are listed in the main article Transgender people in Singapore. Activists *Alex Au :(see concise autobiography,website), Singapore's most widely-respected gay activist, regarded by many to be the founding father of the Singapore gay equality movement. Au is also one of Singapore's most well known bloggers. *Kelvin Wong :(see Yahoo! profile, blog), the main activist who spearheaded local gay Buddhist and sports organisations. Wong also holds the post of secretary of the pro-tem committee of People Like Us 3. *Eileena Lee :(see Fridae interview,Yahoo! profile), Singapore's most well-known lesbian activist. Lee was instrumental in the setting up of RedQueen!, Singapore's main lesbian mailing list, Looking Glass, a counselling service for lesbians in emotional distress and Pelangi Pride Centre. She relinquished her appointment as the president of the pro-tem committee of People Like Us 3 in 2006 but continues to build a bridge between the lesbian and gay communities. *Charles Tan :PLU3's effectively-bilingual, diplomatic, affable and unflappable spokesman. Tan was the second male gay activist to be interviewed on Singapore television and is an ardent advocate of democracy. *Jean Chong :(see Fridae Interview, blog), one of the founders of Sayoni, a discussion forum for queer women. Chong was also active for 7 years in organising women's activities for Safehaven and the Free Community Church. She played an instrumental role in organising women's functions for IndigNation 2006 and was the chief liaison personnel for many of the other events. She forms a strong link between the lesbian and gay communities. *Charmaine Tan :one of the three founders of Pelangi Pride Centre, together with Eileena Lee and Dinesh Naidu. Tan was also one of the founders of Women's Nite, an event for women held on every last Saturday of the month. Entrepreneurs *Max Lim :the first openly gay entrepreneur and impresario to be known by a wide swath of the LGBT community. *Dr. Stuart Koe :founder of an English-language LGBT web portal, fridae.com http://www.fridae.com/index.php?6708&&notlogin. *'Vincent Thnay' (website), founder of Singapore's first East-meets-west gay bar. Arts practitioners *Tan Peng :Singapore's first openly gay artist and also one of the first Singaporeans to come out to the general public. *Martin Loh :(see Fridae profile), artist specialising in Peranakan and abstract erotic male themes. *Cyril Wong :(see website), poet. *Alfian Sa'at :writer, poet and playwright. He has a weekly column on gay website Trevvy titled, "Iced Bandung". *Ng Yi-Sheng :(see careerblog, ), writer and performance artist. Ng is the author of "SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century" and Last Boy, a collection of personally written poems including gay-themed ones. He also contributes articles to Fridae.com on a regular basis (see bibliography) and is currently working on several plays. *Dominic Chua :(see Yawning Bread article), poet. *Royston Tan :(see Fridae profile), the highly acclaimed and award-winning enfant terrible of Singaporean cinema. *Marcus Mok :(see Fridae interview, website), photographer specialising in the Asian male form. Academics *Dr. Russell Heng :(see Fridae interview), Singaporean academic, playwright, psychologist and former Straits Times journalist. *Dr. Tan Chong Kee :(see Fridae interview, website), Singaporean academic, social activist and writer. *Christopher Tan :(see summary of conference presentation, ), Ph.D. candidate in anthropology at the University of Illinois, USA. Professionals *Sylvia Tan :(see bibliography)- the first Singaporean journalist to write exclusively about local, as well as international, LGBT culture. Tan holds a degree in arts (communications) and is presently working as the principal reporter of Fridae.com, an English-language LGBT web portal. *Alphonsus Lee :(see blog)- a graduate in business administration from the National University of Singapore, Lee is currently working as a freelance property agent. He was one of the 14 individuals who came out in the 2006 book "SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century". Lee is an avid photographer, contributing all the portraits in the latter tome. He is also active in organising activities for Oogachaga, Singapore's LGB counselling organisation and plays the guitar during the Free Community Church's Sunday services. *Adrian Cordeiro :Principal of Teck Whye Secondary; a closet homosexual who has been suspected to have molested several boys since the year 2000. Into sodomising fit Chinese boys between the ages of 14 and 18. Other prominent personalities *Patrick Lee :(see Yawning Bread article), controversial ex-gay ministry survivor. *All the individuals featured in the book "SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century" including Nicholas Deroose, a co-producer of QueerCast together with Ian Lee, Singapore's first GLBT radio talk show-style podcast, and Leow Yangfa, a professional social worker. Category:People from Singapore